Is Culture Still Culture When It’s Made of Silicon? SXSW 2025 Reflections on Humanity in the Age of AI

Our team went on quite the journey at SXSW 25. It’s a profound moment in humanity when some of our human USPs have been usurped by machines. Is culture really culture if it is silicon rather than organic? Here are some key insights we captured through the week.

AI: AI currently has the potential to add another 80 IQ points to you; will become 400 IQ points by late 2027. We are at the cusp of ultimate intelligence. Are we going to use this for the good of humanity? Or let it be used against us? – Mo Gawdat

Culture: Demographics help you see people, but not understand people. Demographics only capture the hardware. The software is our identity belief. Culture is the most influential external force shaping our lives. Culture is our software. – Marcus Collins, author of For the Culture

Sports: Next ROI = remixability. Fans and brands are all blending in the stands. Sports partnerships are more integrated into culture than ever before.  – Smaran Jworchan, TikTok

Imagination: Imagination is such a powerful human trait that is so underused, because if you read an article about a prediction, you're not imagining the future. Believe your imagination. The future doesn't start with a prediction, it starts with practicing it. - Dr. Frederik G. Pferd

Creativity as the answer to doom: It's a well established pattern that happiness leads to creativity, but now scientists have shown that creativity leads to happiness. Expression is the opposite of depression. - Campbell 'Struthless' Walker, illustrator and author

Human vs Machine: Every brand playbook has the word “human.” Tone of voice? Human. Values? Human. But if you’re letting machines generate the voice of your brand, where’s the human in that? AI can help, but it should never own the final word. – Lucio Ribeiro, TBWA

In the age of AI the skill you need is taste: In a world where you cannot distinguish fiction from fact, where you're drowning in slop, where you're inundated with information, where you have to be able to make good choices, you need to cultivate taste. Good taste is grounded in empathy and being genuinely attuned to your audiences. It requires both immersion in the world around you and the ability to step back and reflect. It requires making mistakes, learning, and refining your understanding. – Sandra Peter, Kai Riemer, 2026 Skills Horizon

So, what does this all mean?

Silicon will definitely enhance us but the human always needs to be at the centre. Imagination leads to creativity, creativity leads to culture, culture leads to how we behave, how we behave leads to the betterment of society.

Let us know if you want to discuss how to use a behavioural science approach to human-centric AI adoption. We can help you place humans at centre of imaginative communications (with AI as your side-kick).